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)

 5) Silver Boxes: History, Construction























Well, now that I have you here, I may as
 well
bore you with a little history of silver
 boxes.
One day, some engineer over at Bell labs
 got
the bright idea to sing to his computer.
..
and found that the computer responded by
 dialing
a phone number.  Well, sort of.  Anyway,
 the
10 digit (old style, with the # and * bl
ocked
out) touch tone pad was born.  Lo and be
hold,
though, 2 sets of people decided that 10
 (now 12)
buttons just wasn't enough...they needed
more.  The two people of whom I am speak
ing are
of course Ma Bell and Pa AUTOVON (the mi
litary
phone network).  So, Ma decided to add a
n extra
column to her phones, this one merging t
he
standard row tones with a 1633 Hz tone (
to 
provide the mystical DTMF).  Bell named 
these
buttons A,B,C, and D (aren't you glad we
 have
such imaginative people at the bell syst
em?),
while the army named them Flash, Flash o
verride, 
Priority, and priority interrupt (or is 
it
Flash interrupt and priority override...
)
anyway...these are used as varying degre
es of
priority during wartime (and wargame) ac
tivities
so generals can call their secretaries v
ery
quickly.  Bell's use of ABC and D is not
 so clear.
However, the last button (D) has an inte
resting
property...on about 50% of the informati
on
lines in the country, it will give you a
 pulsing
dial tone.  You can then enter commands 
to
what appears to be a test system for 4A 
boxes.
Anyway...the modification...
Warning...turn on your printer now, and 
read
these instructions several times before 
you
actually try them.  Make SURE you know h
ow
to solder...this could PERMENANTLY damag
e your phone!!!
Step one: Unscrew the two large screws o
n the base of your phone.
Take the cover off and place it and the 
screws
in a safe place.  Now, loosen (but don't
 remove)
the screws on the sides of the touch ton
e key pad.
(these are on the sides, and attach it t
o
its mounting brackets). Now CAREFULLY re
move
the pad from its brackets (don'T rip any
 wires!)
You will notice a plastic cover on the p
ad. 
Separate the two halves, and get them ou
t of your
way (don't destroy them, they'll be need
ed...just
move them down the wire harness that goe
s through
them.  Now look at the top of the pad (s
o the 123 row is facing away, and the 
*0# row toward you.  Turn over the pad.
You should see a mass of wires, gold pla
ted
contacts (yes, it's real gold), discrete
 
components, and two large dougnut shaped
 black
things.  These are coils that generate t
he frequencies.
Ma bell was always one for standards, so
 all
the coils she manufactures are capable o
f generating
all 4 primary tones (she only gives you 
connections to three of them, though).  
You are about to 
make your own connection to the fourth, 
and make
the third column of keys "bank switched"
 between 
normal and fourth row.  Cut three length
s of wire
of different colors about 2 feet 
long (better overkill than underkill...)
I used Blue, Gray and Brown, but these
colors are arbitrary...but I will be ref
erring to 
these colors in the bulletin.
  Look at the coil on the left (with the
 
5 solder contacts facing you, rather tha
n being perpendicular to you.
count over 4 contacts from the left (or 
2 from the right)
and solder a wire to the 4th post from t
he left.  This is the
1633 Hz output.  Solder the other end of
 this wire to 
the left pole of the smallest SPDT switc
h you can find
This is the point of no return now...tak
e a look at the bottom
edge of the keypad.  You should
see a row of three g                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                d spread them apart.
Solder the brown wire to the top contact
 (the one
futhest from you), and solder it to the 
RIGHT pole of the SPDT.
Now, take the blue wire and solder it to
 the bottom (closest)
contact.  Solder the other end of
this wire to the CENTER pole of the SPDT
.
  You have now completed your modificati
ons.  When the switch is
in one position, you will get normal ton
es, in the other you'll get 1633 tones.
  Some finess can be added by passing th
e three wires through
the plastic cover, and in through the ga
p in the
case of your phone under the place where
 you hang it up.
then solder the wires to the switch in t
he proper places, 
and you can glue the switch to the wall 
on the 
inside of that small alcove in the phone
 after taking the slack 
wire back into the phone.
(this just to make sure you read the who
le thing before trying it...)
   Now, call directory assistance using 
normal tones (out of state, that is)
XXX-555-1212,  Now switch quickly to 163
3, and press
down on the # key (now the D key).  If y
ou are
on an old switchbox (4A), you will get a
 pulsing
dial tone.  You can then switch back to 
normal, and try dialing different 
numbers.  Two of the most interesting ar
e 6 and 7.  These
often form a loop-around type 
connection, and two people can call in, 
one using 6
and the other 7, and talk in this manner
.  If enough
people perform this mod, I will keep "of
fice hours" on 
one of these...
   Happy Phreaking...
      Cain
Note: You will not recieve a pulsing ton
e until the operator
actually picks up on the line.  If you h
ear ringing, keep pressing.  
The tone must be on at the same time the
 operator gives her "beep".
If you hear her cursing at stupid people
 with stuck buttons, 
chances are this one doesn't work...try 
out
of the way states like Montana, Wyoming,
 etc.

Bulletin
 to print, <L> for list, or <RETURN> to 
